Last night at about 10 p.m., I and everyone else on Rick Santorum’s list received a painfully long email, which culminated in Rick Santorum finally endorsing Mitt Romney. Santorum dropped out of the GOP presidential primary on Tuesday, April 10th, so it took almost a month for him to endorse Romney. After dropping out of the race, it hardly took Newt Gingrich any time to endorse Romney. So why did it take Santorum so long?
Why It Took A Month For The Santorum Endorsement
It’s because NOTHING in Washington comes without a price or a deal. Santorum understood that his endorsement as the runner-up in the GOP primary is valuable. Considering that Romney has his fair share of problems relating to the average American–after all he is filthy rich–he desperately needed some “street credibility” from a more down-to-earth candidate. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that Santorum would not throw his name behind Romney until he had a deal in place, and apparently it took almost a month to solidify that deal.
So the question that everyone’s speculating about is what is the deal? Will Santorum have a role in a Romney administration? Could Santorum wind up as the VP on the Romney ticket in the general election?
Will Santorum Be The VP Nominee?
The P.S. at the end of his email to supporters reads, “As promised, very soon we will be making another big announcement, and I will be asking you to once again join forces with me to keep up the fight, together. Stay tuned.” It sounds like a bit of a cliffhanger, encouraging his supporters to hold on for a little while longer for Santorum’s reemergence.
In the end, I don’t think that Santorum will be the VP candidate for the same reason that there wasn’t an Obama-Clinton ticket in 2008–the presidential candidate needs another “type” more than they need the runner up.
Back in 2008, Hillary Clinton may have seemed like a logical choice for Obama as a Vice President. So why wasn’t she chosen? Aside from all of the mudslinging in the Democratic primary, Clinton wasn’t chosen because America was barely ready for a Black president, and there was little chance that a ticket with two “minorities” would be successful. As such, her maximum consolation prize for bowing out of the race was the number three position–Secretary of State–and as we know, she took it reluctantly.
Of course, I don’t think that Mitt Romney has any real chance of winning the general election, but his best chance would be without Santorum as a VP. Consequently, if he and his advisers are smart, they didn’t promise Santorum the VP slot. Why?
Ultimately, Romney needs a way to convert a lot more voters to his side. Independents are a logical group to target, especially since we know that most of them are left-leaning. But, he needs to mobilize an entirely different voting base that the GOP doesn’t currently have.
The Ideal VP Picks For Romney
In terms of mobilizing an entire group of voters, targeting Latinos would be a smart move for Romney. Despite the GOP’s strong anti-immigration stance, he just might be able to woo Latino voters in much the same way as Barack Obama wooed Black voters. If Romney selected Florida Senator Marco Rubio, he’d significantly boost his chances of winning the general election for at least a couple of reasons.
First, Rubio would give Romney an advantage in the Florida general election, which is really important because that state is always a political battleground. Second, there will be many Latino voters who would vote for a Romney-Rubio ticket simply because Rubio is Latino, just like there were Blacks who voted for Obama simply because he is Black.
Romney could make an equally wise move by selecting a female VP candidate. We recently saw Senator Kelly Ayotte of New Hampshire hit the campaign trail with Mitt Romney, who apparently has her on his radar. Of course, the thought of selecting a female for the GOP general election campaign will undoubtedly bring back memories of the train wreck that was the McCain-Palin ticket. Nevertheless, if played correctly, a female could be a real asset to the Romney ticket. After all, over half of the U.S. population is female!
The Bottom Line
In time, we’ll eventually find out what the deal between Santorum and Romney is made of, but I doubt it involves the VP slot. Keep in mind, this assessment is based on Mitt Romney’s VP pick actually helping him to win the election, which much of his strategy doesn’t. So it wouldn’t surprise me if by some remote chance we do see Santorum pop up as the VP candidate. And, if we actually DO see that happen, you’ll know that that the deal for Barack Obama’s next four years is completely signed, sealed, and delivered. Of course, truth be told, I think that happened a long time ago!
Full Text Of Santorum Endorsement
In case you care to read Rick Santorum’s endorsement email in its entirety, have at it:
Friend
Thank you again for all you did as one of my strongest and committed supporters. Your belief in our campaign helped us start a movement of Americans who believe deeply that our best days are ahead as long as we fight to strengthen our families, unshackle our economy and promote freedom here and around the world. Karen and I will be forever grateful for the support, kindness and commitment you showed us, as well as our children, over these last months.
On Friday, Governor Romney came to Pittsburgh for an over-hour long one-on-one meeting. The conversation was candid, collegial and focused on the issues that you helped me give voice to during our campaign; because I believe they are essential ingredients to not only winning this fall, but turning our country around.
While the issue of my endorsement did not come up, I certainly have heard from many of you who have weighed in on whether or not I should issue a formal endorsement. Thank you for your counsel, it has been most helpful. However, I felt that it was completely impossible for me to even consider an endorsement until after a meeting to discuss issues critical to those of us who often feel our voices are not heard by the establishment: social conservatives, tea-party supporters, lower and middle income working families.
Clearly without the overwhelming support from you all, I never would have won 11 states and over 3 million votes, and we would not have won more counties than all the other candidates combined. I can assure you that even though I am no longer a candidate for president, I will still continue to fight every day for our shared values – the values that made America the greatest country in the history of the world.
During our meeting I felt a deep responsibility to assess Governor Romney’s commitment to addressing the issues most important to conservatives, as well his commitment to ensuring our appropriate representation in a Romney administration.
The family and its foundational role in America’s economic success, a central point of our campaign, was discussed at length. I was impressed with the Governor’s deep understanding of this connection and his commitment to economic policies that preserve and strengthen families. He clearly understands that having pro-family initiatives are not only the morally and economically right thing to do, but that the family is the basic building block of our society and must be preserved.
I also shared with Governor Romney my belief that we cannot restore America as the greatest economic engine the world has ever seen until we return America to being a manufacturing superpower. He listened very carefully to my advice on this matter, and while our policy prescriptions differed, he clearly expressed his desire to create more opportunities for those that are feeling left behind in this economy.
As it is often said, “personnel is policy.” I strongly encouraged Governor Romney as he builds out his campaign staff and advisors that he add more conservative leaders as an integral part of his team. And you can be sure that I will work with the Governor to help him in this task to ensure he has a strong team that will support him in his conservative policy initiatives.
Of course we talked about what it would take to win this election. As you know I started almost every speech with the phrase that this was the most important election since the election of 1860 and four more years of President Obama is simply not an option. As I contemplated what further steps I will take, that reality weighed heavy on me. The America we know is being fundamentally changed to look more like a European socialist state than the land of opportunity our founding fathers established.
Freedom and personal responsibility are being replaced with big government dependency. The greatest and most productive workers in the world are being hamstrung by excessive regulations making it impossible to compete. Our healthcare system had been socialized, and the worth of each life dictated by some government bureaucrat. Our allies are insulted while our enemies are appeased. And our religious beliefs and freedom have come under attack.
What is even more troubling is what a second term of an Obama administration could bring. President Obama’s admission to the Russians that he will have more flexibility in a second term can only be translated to “if you thought I was liberal in the first four years you haven’t seen anything yet!”
The primary campaign certainly made it clear that Governor Romney and I have some differences. But there are many significant areas in which we agree: the need for lower taxes, smaller government, and a reduction in out-of-control spending. We certainly agree that abortion is wrong and marriage should be between one man and one woman. I am also comfortable with Governor Romney on foreign policy matters, and we share the belief that we can never allow Iran to possess nuclear weapons. And while I had concerns about Governor Romney making a case as a candidate about fighting against Obamacare, I have no doubt if elected he will work with a Republican Congress to repeal it and replace it with a bottom up, patient, not government, driven system.
Above all else, we both agree that President Obama must be defeated. The task will not be easy. It will require all hands on deck if our nominee is to be victorious. Governor Romney will be that nominee and he has my endorsement and support to win this the most critical election of our lifetime.
My conversation with Governor Romney was very productive, but I intend to keep lines of communication open with him and his campaign. I hope to ensure that the values that made America that shining city on the hill are illuminated brightly by our party and our candidates thus ensuring not just a victory, but a mandate for conservative governance.
Karen and I know firsthand how difficult the campaign trail can be particularly as governor Romney faces relentless attacks from the democrats. We have been praying for him and his family and will continue to do so in the weeks and months ahead.
Thank you again for all you have done for us, and I look forward to working together to defeat President Obama this fall and to protect faith, family, freedom and opportunity in America.
With Gratitude,
Rick Santorum
P.S. As promised, very soon we will be making another big announcement, and I will be asking you to once again join forces with me to keep up the fight, together. Stay tuned.
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